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Halloween Soup Tasting

When fall rolls around, y’all can keep your Pumpkin Spice Lattes and endless candy. I want some soup. Soups, actually, because a girl always needs options. This Halloween, we had some friends over for a soup tasting and bonfire. The soups were fantastic and the costumes were darling, but as you will see, the bonfire didn’t quite make it to s’mores.

I pulled this recipe from a Pampered Chef catalog several years ago and it makes an appearance several times each holiday season. The curry addition is sure to impress and using the mascarpone in lieu of cream gives it the smoothest texture. For that, I couldn’t make it from November to March without my immersion (stick) blender. Who says girls can’t handle power tools?

The last time I talked Danny into dressing up with me, we were still in college… here’s a throwback:

This year we went as another couple in the “opposites attract” genre: cops and robbers.

Some things haven’t changed much in six years… such as my love for soup (to the point as always). This recipe has an extremely special place in my heart because I first made it for a gathering of friends after we had lost a new but beautiful person in our lives. Every time I make it, I think of her and how I wish she could be there celebrating with us – how I know she would have loved to be.

The high winds and eventual rains caused our bonfire to get a little out of control. Luckily, we had the “authorities” on hand… along with a surgeon, a nurse and a handful of ED docs (dressed as various characters). Not too many guests left the kitchen anyway, and the hands-down favorite soup of the night was the most simple to make!

Any and all of these recipes can be made with either chicken or vegetable stock and contain no meat. Ideally, for a tasting or a crowd, I try to make at least one vegetarian option. The use of only vegetables and dairy also meant that for less than $60, I had three soups on hand to feed as many as two dozen people. The upside to the weather keeping many of our guests at home is that I now have leftovers for the week ahead! Soup-er.

Many thanks to our dear friends for lending your company and crock pots.